Collier Contract Extended Through 2008

Lincoln -- Nebraska Athletic Director Steve Pederson announced Friday Coach Barry Collier has received a contract extension. Collier's contract now extends four years through the 2007-08 season.

The extension comes after Collier completed his fourth year at Nebraska by guiding the Huskers to an 18-13 overall record in 2003-04, including a 2-1 mark in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT). It was the seventh time in 15 years as a head coach that Collier's team has earned a postseason berth and eighth time it has won at least 18 games.

Nebraska was one of the top defensive teams in the Big 12 Conference and nation in 2003-04 under Collier while making significant improvements on the offensive end of the court. The Huskers led the Big 12 in field-goal percentage defense and scoring defense in the regular season and finished the year ranked 20th (.400) and 38th (62.9 ppg) in the nation, respectively. It was the lowest scoring defense at Nebraska since 1983-84 and tied the mark for lowest field-goal percentage defense at NU since 1960-61.

Nebraska also ranked 41st nationally in scoring margin (+7.6) after averaging 70.5 points per game. The Huskers' scoring offense was up 7.2 points per game over the 2002-03 season, marking the largest single-season gain in offensive output by the Huskers since a 9.0 jump between the 19964-65 season and 1965-66. The Huskers topped the 70-point plateau 18 times in 2003-04, including nine of their last 13 games.

During that final stretch, Nebraska had a pair of victories over ranked teams that showcased improvements on both ends of the court. The Huskers handed then-No. 12/13 Kansas a 74-55 loss on Feb. 18 and came back with its second straight home win over a ranked opponent in a 72-44 victory against then-No. 25 Texas Tech. Overall, three of Nebraska's four largest margins of victory ever over ranked opponents have come in the past two seasons under Collier.